Hill leads 'Dogs past Hiwassee

Published: Saturday, December 21, 2013 at 08:07 PM.

BOILING SPRINGS - Jerome Hill had 19 points, 17 rebounds and two blocks to power Gardner-Webb to a 90-54 win over Hiwassee (Tenn.) College Saturday afternoon.

Gardner-Webb (7-7) used a 20-5 run midway through the second half to blow the game wide open, and closed the game on a 28-7 burst.

Hill pulled down 14 of his career-high 17 rebounds on the defensive end, as Gardner-Webb held a 48-26 edge on the backboards and controlled the paint – outscoring Hiwassee 53-16 inside, blocking seven shots and limiting the Tigers to just six offensive rebounds.

The day capped a productive week for Hill, who scored 22 points and pulled down nine boards Monday night at No. 7 Duke. Hill averaged 16.7 points, 9.7 rebounds and 1.7 blocked shots per game for the week.

Jarvis Davis came off the bench to tie his career-high with 14 points on 6 of 11 shooting and Naji Hibbert scored 13 points in just 23 minutes. Donta Harper (nine points, 19 minutes), Mike Byron (seven points, 13 minutes) and Isaiah Ivey (seven points, 16 minutes) were all effective as the Runnin’ Bulldogs went deep into the bench for much of the afternoon.

Hiwassee (1-11) pulled within six points at halftime when Joel Bailey leaked out and snuck a layup in off the glass just before the buzzer sounded.

The Tigers struggled mightily in the final 20 minutes, making just 6 of 31 shots (19.4 percent), as Gardner-Webb swatted away several interior chances and switched defenses effectively. Hiwassee finished at 32.8 percent for the game (19 of 58).

BOILING SPRINGS - Jerome Hill had 19 points, 17 rebounds and two blocks to power Gardner-Webb to a 90-54 win over Hiwassee (Tenn.) College Saturday afternoon.

Gardner-Webb (7-7) used a 20-5 run midway through the second half to blow the game wide open, and closed the game on a 28-7 burst.

Hill pulled down 14 of his career-high 17 rebounds on the defensive end, as Gardner-Webb held a 48-26 edge on the backboards and controlled the paint – outscoring Hiwassee 53-16 inside, blocking seven shots and limiting the Tigers to just six offensive rebounds.

The day capped a productive week for Hill, who scored 22 points and pulled down nine boards Monday night at No. 7 Duke. Hill averaged 16.7 points, 9.7 rebounds and 1.7 blocked shots per game for the week.

Jarvis Davis came off the bench to tie his career-high with 14 points on 6 of 11 shooting and Naji Hibbert scored 13 points in just 23 minutes. Donta Harper (nine points, 19 minutes), Mike Byron (seven points, 13 minutes) and Isaiah Ivey (seven points, 16 minutes) were all effective as the Runnin’ Bulldogs went deep into the bench for much of the afternoon.

Hiwassee (1-11) pulled within six points at halftime when Joel Bailey leaked out and snuck a layup in off the glass just before the buzzer sounded.

The Tigers struggled mightily in the final 20 minutes, making just 6 of 31 shots (19.4 percent), as Gardner-Webb swatted away several interior chances and switched defenses effectively. Hiwassee finished at 32.8 percent for the game (19 of 58).

Gardner-Webb shot 55.2 percent for the afternoon (32-of-58) and 7 of 16 from long range (43.8 percent), with Hibbert (3 of 6) and Ivey (2 of 4) combining on five of those treys. GWU took advantage of 15 Hiwassee turnovers, scoring 27 points – including 23 in transition. The ‘Dogs also had 15 second-chance points, with Hill and Onzie Branch each pulling down three offensive caroms.

Hiwassee got a team-high 12 points from Kasim Davidson off the bench, and 10 points from Howie Meadows.

Gardner-Webb will enjoy a lengthy break for Christmas before getting back to action on Jan. 2 at Delaware State.